


Bond

by LlamaLlamaNewt



Series: Avengers Pack [3]
Category: Marvel
Genre: Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Alternate Universe - Still Have Powers, Avengers Pack, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Everyone Is Poly Because Avengers, Multi, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Natasha-centric, Other, Pack Bonding, Pack Feels, Platonic Cuddling, Protective Tony Stark, Team Bonding, Team as Family, Telepathic Bond, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Is a Good Bro, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony-centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-03
Updated: 2016-04-03
Packaged: 2018-05-30 22:01:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6442732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LlamaLlamaNewt/pseuds/LlamaLlamaNewt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How Tony developed his bond with the team. Some Tony and Nat fluff.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bond

**Author's Note:**

> I attempted to write a story for school... and instead this happened. Enjoy this 6 pages of ... feels. 
> 
> It's necessary to read the first two stories in the series for this to make sense, plus, it gives a bit more background to those two stories as well.

** Bond **

 

Tony had always liked Natasha, even after she stabbed him in the neck; especially after that actually, but not because he hadn’t noticed the threat she posed, but rather because he had known from the beginning she was a mole who meant him no harm. Natasha was trusted. Besides, she hadn't actually _stabbed_ him. It had been surprisingly gentle for a hypodermic needle in the soft flesh of his neck. He always complained louder when things didn’t hurt, because he wasn’t used to the gentle treatment.

And, it had saved his life.

He hadn't actually stayed mad at her for long, but he had to make it look like he did. He couldn't show his weakness to others. So he faked being mad at her. She couldn’t be hurt if things went badly, which, of course, they did. Sure, she was a super-spy and former-soviet assassin... but Tony liked her, so he pushed her away, like he did everyone else he trusted.

Natasha, unlike the others, saw through Tony’s attempts. People Tony mistrusted didn’t stay in his life. What had happened with Stane had proved that. Natasha knew that if Tony had truly mistrusted her… she wouldn’t be able to step inside New York without devastating consequences ever again. So when Tony offered her a place to stay in the mansion, all the while calling her a spy, a traitor, and showing open mistrust and disdain for her… she knew it was all an act, so she played it up. She let him pretend to hate her. And she faked an uncaring façade. In reality, she couldn’t help but admire his acting ability. People often claimed that Tony was too loud and exuberant, too easy to read. But if you looked past the loud and obvious distractions, you could see the manipulations. The outward obvious motions were just that, obvious and distracting. People didn’t bother looking for the subtle movements because they figured he wasn’t capable of them.

Natasha admired Tony’s skills. He was every bit the genius he claimed to be. He saw things others didn’t, and he was able to manipulate people because of it.

Therefore, it was a rare occurrence when Natasha could surprise him, but she kept doing it. She’d been instrumental in helping him survive long enough to figure out his father’s formula to _badassium_. Then she helped him re-learn how to change again. It had been years since he had changed… and she had made it seem so easy to change once more.

But the biggest thing that Natasha had done for him was show him that he could have a pack again. He could be part of a _family_ again. The Avengers had been living in Tony’s house for a few months when it happened. They had been going on missions together; stopping alien invasions, taking out stray Doom Bots, saving Spiderman’s ass when his villains tag-teamed him, amongst other things together during that time.

 

One day, he was working in his workshop working on upgrades for the suit, losing himself in the pounding bass of the playlist JARVIS had queued up for him when a strange emotion rolled over him. He felt a fury like he hadn’t felt in years stopped him in his tracks. He dropped his tools in shock, his hands shaking with the strength of the emotion.

The rage dissipated shortly after, and he picked up his tools from where they fell confused. He brushed it off as nothing, but the rest of the day, the echoing ghost of the emotion remained the rest of the afternoon.

Later that night, JARVIS alerted Tony to dinner, so Tony reluctantly left his work behind and headed up to the common floor before Steve, or someone worse came downstairs to either force-feed him or drag him bodily into the elevator.

He exited the elevator, heading to wash his hands in the nearby bathroom before heading to the kitchen. As he walked into the kitchen, he finally tuned into his surroundings, pausing in the doorway trying to catch-up to the conversation.

“You shouldn’t just let people say things like that about you! It’s wrong!” Steve exclaimed.

“I’ve been dealing with assholes like him for my entire life Steve. It’s not anything new. I can handle myself.”

“Just because you can doesn’t make it right!”

Tony stood and stared as Steve argued on Natasha’s behalf, the poor chivalrous sod, while Natasha just rolled her eyes. Oddly, Tony felt the echo of the rage, but at the same time he felt an odd feeling of amusement… and he wasn’t sure it was his.

He eyed Natasha, suddenly feeling the oddest feeling that it was her he was feeling. He quickly shook that thought off, and instead decided to butt into the conversation and give his two cents.

“Mere mortals couldn’t handle Natasha mad Cap. She has to brush those things off, especially as a woman. I’ve got the rundown from Pepper, and I’ve had to deal with a lesser form of the same being the rich, genius prodigy child of another rich, genius. You get to the point where you just brush it off and break things in effigy later.”

Natasha eyed Tony, her expression unreadable.

“We’re a team, we’re friends. I won’t stand for that kind of bullshit Tony, no matter who it is to, or who it is from!”

“I appreciate the thought Steve,” Natasha said. “I really do, but assholes will be assholes.”

 

 

She was just the first. When it started happening with the others, Tony learned to carefully conceal his own emotions from them. He couldn’t let them know. He watched them slowly realizing their bonds for one another, forming a pack… And he pushed them away. He wouldn’t risk them.

Then Natasha saved him once more, helping reclaim the piece of him he thought he’d lost forever. He could shift again… Finally be a member of the team, not be an emotional mess and a burden (he would never tell them that he still thought that sometimes. Depression worked in mysterious ways besides, and they knew that). Once he had that piece of himself back… he couldn’t deny it anymore. He couldn’t deny them that. He’d been selfish, feeling them, hearing them the whole time, but not acknowledging the bond… leaving it once-sided and empty. And once he admitted it, things got a whole lot easier.

Months later, Tony would admit it to Natasha too. Maybe one day, he would tell the team.  

Natasha lay beside Tony, trying not to move, her right forearm wrapped thickly in bandages, a cold compress underneath her left shoulder. Tony had his head angled oddly against her good arm, wanting to snuggle up to her, but also trying to keep off of each of their respective bruises and superficial cuts.

James and Steve hadn’t yet returned from the bathroom, and Bruce was already sound asleep against Tony’s back, his thick fur warming Tony more than the blankets ever could.

Sam and Thor sat on the couch on the other side of the room, Clint between them, Thor and Sam wrapping up Clint’s numerous cuts and scrapes.  

“Your mind is oddly quiet братишка,” Natasha murmured, turning her head slightly towards Tony.

He smiled, not opening his eyes. “Don’t tell Bruce,” he whispered. “But you’re my favourite.”

He could feel the rush of affection from Natasha. He knew if he had the energy to open his eyes, he would see a soft smile gracing her lips.

“You were the first one I heard you know,” he continued, his voice soft.

Natasha’s breath hitched slightly, though her body did not tense.

“Really,” Tony said sincerely. “You were with the popsicles and I guess some prick insulted you. I felt your rage but didn’t realize it was your until that night at dinner when Steve went on a rant about it.”

“That was so long ago,” Natasha whispered.

“I know,” Tony replied. “I’m sorry. I was so afraid.”

“Shhh,” Natasha soothed. “It’s alright братишка. I’m not mad.”

“I know,” Tony whispered.

“When did you know for sure it was me?”

“I kept feeling things that weren’t me during the day. I thought I was hallucinating, or that sleep deprivation was catching up with me finally.”

Natasha laughed quietly.

Tony smiled against her arm. “Then during one of the clean ups after Richards and his idiots Clint jumped off a building and I heard you scream Clint’s name at the same time you were swearing through the coms. I knew for sure then that it was you in my head.”

Natasha was silent.

“I’m not surprised it was you first,” Tony admitted.

Natasha tensed. Tony could feel her trying to tamp down on her wariness through their bond. “You never trusted me.”

“I trusted you the most Nat,” Tony admitted without fear. “You were the first one I trusted, I just couldn’t tell you, not after everything with nearly dying, Stane, nearly getting Pepper killed, the Team showing up, nearly dying, nearly getting Pepper _and_ Happy killed, then nearly dying _again_ , then the whole HYDRA debacle… I never once doubted you Nat. Never.”

Natasha’s fingers ghosted along his arm, and she turned her head towards him.

Tony opened his eyes, looking straight into hers.

“Спасибо. Так много,” Natasha said, her eyes wet.

“Всегда,” Tony whispered back, closing his eyes once more, and curling tighter into her side.

Since the beginning Natasha had been an unexpected gift for Tony, and now she knew it.

One day, Natasha would tell Tony the same thing.

**Author's Note:**

> Russian Translations:
> 
> братишка - bratuska = a diminutive form of brother, or might mean little brother  
> Спасибо. Так много - spacibo. Tak mnogo = thank you. so much  
> Всегда - Vsegda = always
> 
>  
> 
> Leave me a comment. You might inspire me. <3 Love you all! Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
